Watch.



C. E. DE LONG.

WATCH.

APPLlCATION FILED MAY 2|, 191a.

Patented Nov. 5, 1918.

' mvrrn STATES PATENT OFFICE.

CHARLES E. DE LONG, OF SPRINGFIELD, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOR TO ILLINOIS WATCH COMPANY, OF SPRINGFIELD, ILLINOIS, A CORPORATION OF ILLINOIS.

WATCH.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, Crrannns E. DE Lone, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Springfield, in the county of Sangamon, State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in WVatches, of which the following is a specification, reference being had to the accompanying draw-- This invention relates to improved means for avoiding the objections due to the hold ing of the mainspring of a watch at the eX- treme limit of its winding. Various means have been devised for this purpose including different constructions and arrangements of recoiling clicks that permit a slight reverse movement of the winding mechanism at the end of the winding operation. Such slight reverse movement will relieve the excessive strain that would otherwise be imposed on the mainspring when such spring is wound to its extreme limit and locked there by a form of click that retained all the forward advance made by that member of the winding train that is secured upon the arbor of the mainspring. Among the various constructions of recoiling clicks for this purpose are those of the type employing a toothed segment or mutilated pinion, and it is more particularly to that type that my invention relates. Briefly stated, my improvement consists in combining such a click with a bar spring that is adapted to be secured at oneend to the edge of the watch plate or bridge that is present in many watches of Swiss design and so pivoting the segn'ient or mutilated pinion to the free end of such bar as to be yieldingly held in constant engagement with the gear-train member that is affixed to the end of the mainspring arbor, all as more fully set forth hereinafter. i

In the drawings Figure 1 is a plan View of a watch-movement embodying my improvements;

Fig. 2 is a detail, being a plan View of the spring that carries the recoiling click;

Fig. 8 is a detail, being a perspective view of the spring shown in Fig. 2 with the click in place thereon; and

Fig. 4 is a detail, partly broken away, similar to Fig. 3 but showing a modification Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Nov. 5, 1918.

Serial No. 235,782.

in the construction of the combined spring and click.

All of the figures are very much enlarged for the purpose of clearness of illustration.

Referring to the several figures of the drawing, and to so much of the watch construction as is necessary to an understanding of the invention,

5 indicates the casing for the watch mechanism and 6 a plate or bridge secured therein. 7 indicates the usual winding-stem projecting through the casing and having secured upon its inner end a pinion 8 that meshes with the gear 9 that in turn is in mesh with the ratchet gear 10, which latter is fast upon the arbor 11 which carries and has wound upon it as usual the mainspring (not shown) of the watch.

12 indicates a bar of spring metal which is secured at one end to the edge of the bridge 6, being so secured in the construction shown by a screw 13. It lies alongside of and closely adjacent to one face of the ratchet 10 and at its free end projects beyond the edge of said ratchet. The portion of the bar that extends alongside of the ratchet is narrower than its upper end portion thus economizing space and at the same time affording a comparatively wide end where the attaching screw 13 passes through it. Adjacent to the free end is a laterallyextending stud 1% upon which is pivotally mounted a click in the form of a toothed segment or mutilated pinion 15 which is so located as to be in constant engagement with the ratchet 10, such engagement being maintained, as will be understood, by the spring action of the bar 12. For convenience in describing the operation the end teeth of the click are indicated by aand b, respectively, and while the click is shown as having five teeth I do not confine myself to such number. 16 indicates a stop to limit the rotation of the click in both directions. As shown, such stop 16 consists of a stud at the free end of the bar 12 extending laterally therefrom at the same side as the other stud 14.

By reason of the action of the mainspring on its arbor 11 the ratchet will normally hold the click with its tooth a pressed against the under side of the stop stud 16 as shown. Immediately upon the commencement of the winding operation, however, the click will turn on its pivot 14 until its other end tooth 7) is brought in contact with-the upper side of such stop. Thereafter during the winding operation said tooth a will be the only tooth left in engagement with the ratchet and it will. then act like an ordinary click, riding over and in contact with the successive teeth of the ratchet 10 by reason of the action of the spring bar 12. Upon the completion of the winding operation the effect or the mainspring of the watch will be to reversely rotate the ratchet 10. Such reverse rotation will, of course, turn the click onits pivot stud until the end tooth 0 comes in contact with the stud 16, and thereupon the, ratchet will be held firmly l cked against'further reverse rotation. WVhile such reverse turning of the ratchet is but slight it will be suliicient in case of over winding? of the watch to relieve the mainspring of the excessive strain on such spring that such extreme winding occasions. 7

While it is evident that by reason of the tendency of the spring bar 12 to hold the" click constantly engaged with the ratchet 10 such ratchet will be firmly locked in place when the parts are as shown in Fig. 1, yet it will be equally evidentthat during the winding operation and after the click has been turned on its pivot as described the spring can easily yield upward so that no interference with the winding movement can be had. I

In some constructions wherein the winding ratchet wheel 10 is located below the bridge I may modify the construction as shown in Fig. 1, wherein the bar instead of being narrowed as described is continued of full width throughout its length and provided with a longitudinal slot through which the ratchet-wheel will project. In such modification the spring bar as a whole is indicated by 17, the said slot therein by 18, the click by 19 and the stud on which such click is pivotally mounted by 20. The

click will be the same as in the first-described construction. The stud 16 of the first con struction will not be employed, however, as the end wall of the bar will serve as the stop for the click,.as' will be understood.

What I claim as my invention and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. The combination with the winding-train of a watch, of a spring bar secured at one of its ends to a fixed support and a click consistin 0t a toothed se ment or mutilated pinion pivotally mounted on said bar and having a limited rotating movement; in either direction, said segment or mutilated pinionbeing held by said bar in mesh with one member of said winding-train.

2. The combination with the winding-train of a watch, of a spring bar secured at one end to a fixed support and extending alongside of one face of a member of said train and projecting at its free end beyond the edge of such member, a toothed segment or mutilated pinion pivotally mounted on said bar and heldin mesh with said windingtrainmember by the action of said spring bar, and means for limiting the turning in either direction of said segment or mutilated pinion.

3. lhe combination with the winding-train of a watch, of a spring bar secured at one end to a fixed support and extending alongside of one face of a member of said train and projecting at its free end beyond the edge of such member, said bar having two laterally-projecting studs extending opposite the edge of said winding-train member, and a click consisting of a toothed segment or mutilated pinion pivotally mounted on one of said studs and adapted to be stopped in its rotation in either direction by the other stud.

4. The combination with the winding-train of a watch, of a spring bar secured at one end to a fixed support and having a narrowed portion that extends alongside of one face of a member of said train with the free end of such narrowed portion projecting beyond the edge of such member, said narrowed portion of the bar having two laterally-projecting studs extending opposite the edge of said winding-train member, and

a click consisting of a toothed segment or 100 mutilated pinion pivotally mounted on one of said studs and adapted to be stopped in its rotation in either direction by the other stud.

CHARLES E. DE LONG.

copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. G. 

